Okanagan group offering monthly support group for those trying to leave religion

Adam Proskiw - Reporter

Image Credit: Shutterstock

May 06, 2016 - 9:00 PM

KELOWNA – A group of Okanagan residents are setting up a monthly support group for people who are trying to leave organized religion behind.

The Centre for Inquiry Okanagan is a charitable organization that promotes critical thinking, secularism and human rights. On Wednesday, May 18, they will host an informational talk about a support group they’re calling Leaving Religion.

CFI Secular Services chair Tania Kuehn says the meeting will feature an informative talk followed by an “Ask an Atheist” question and answer period and social time.

“We understand that having a major shift in religious faith may be challenging in many ways, and that it is difficult to deal with the loss of certain beliefs, rituals, and communities,” she says in a media release. “We also realize that there is a lot of fear and stigma around topics such as non-belief and secularism, and it is our aim to dismantle misconceptions about these topics.”

The talk will take place from 7:30 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. at the Activity Room on the second floor of the Parkinson Activity Centre.

After the first meeting on the May 18, the Leaving Religion group will meet twice a month starting in June in a central location in Kelowna. They will offer peer support by sharing experiences, answering questions, and providing an environment in which people are encouraged to lead healthy and fulfilling lives, no matter their status of religious faith.

“It’s not a secret that here in Canada, in 2016, our views on organized religion have been changing quite drastically over the last several decades,” Keuhn says. “It’s not unheard of that many people are moving away from religion. For many of us, the topic of leaving, or even simply considering leaving, a religious faith is a very tough topic to talk about.”

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